Latest winter build

Last year over winter I spent my spare time building a version on Smeighan's 9 foot nutcracker. It turned out a huge talking point.
Well as the rain has started, I was at a loss as to what to do this year, there are so many novel ideas, so I put it to my daughter. Big mistake!
This is what she wants me to build..... Just bigger!

So I started by measuring the main dimensions of the model, then upscaling the whole lot to get a rough size.
I have drawn the outline out on a sheet of ply ready to cut out the cab.
I am taking some inspiration off videos and pictures I have seen on the internet and will be mostly making it up as I go along, but will be documenting it as I go along, so will post the build here if anyone is interested.
as with the nutcracker, it is a long term project, so there will be long gaps between posts.

I had to work out where it was going to live before I even started. I have now decided to build a storage/railway workshop down the side of the house. And if I am going to do that I might as well make it big enough to store the sleigh and a bunch of other stuff.

On a positive note today, I went to the local salvage yard today and they had some sheets of 15mm ply going out cheap, so I have spent a few hours in the shed tonight cutting out the base and seats. I already had a sheet of 9mm so have cut the front and 1 side already.
But better than that, I was talking to a mate and just randomly asked if he knew where I could get some train wheels.
To my surprise, he said he had 4 small ones that I could have
Now to find 2 more larger ones.

I didn't get much time in the shed this weekend, but I did manage to get the other bits of the cab cut out and then stapled together. (I am gluing and using an air stapler to assemble, I will be adding 42x19 pine in the structural weak points with either bolts or screws)